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First Outboard to Ever Lead Parker
<TABLE class=tborder id=post80082 cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=6 width="100%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=alt2 style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px"><TABLE cellSpacing=6 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD noWrap>Ron Hill <!-- BEGIN TEMPLATE: postbit_onlinestatus -->http://forums.screamandfly.com/forum...ser_online.gif <!-- END TEMPLATE: postbit_onlinestatus --><SCRIPT type=text/javascript> vbmenu_register("postmenu_80082", true); </SCRIPT>
Senior Member
</TD><TD width="100%"></TD><TD vAlign=top noWrap>Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Costa Mesa, CA
Posts: 995
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<HR style="COLOR: #72a5d8" SIZE=1><!-- / icon and title --><!-- message -->I was reading about someone complaining about painting checkers on their boat. I remembered our DeSilva Wing that was red with black and white checks....
Rod Zapf and my dad built the cowlings and painted this boat in our garage. I bolted all kinds of aluminum angles to the bottom ...not to make it turn, but to hold air on the straight aways...
I had some of the first 100 cubic inch Evinrudes... OMC's team boats were running in the high 80's...Our DeSilva was running in the low 100's....103...
Fred Hauenstein and I co drove and we picked up 8 laps, I think of lap money....After our Evinrude lead, the President of Mercury, Carl, himself, sent word he wanted that "GOD DAMN HILL BOAT"....
Ann Strang, Charlie's mother negotiated a deal with Carl to buy the boat..actually owned by Jimbo McConnell's dad and my dad....My old man was heading down to get the check from Carl when OMC's Jack Leek...yelled at him and said, "Wait a minute Russ...I'll give you a check...."
I could write several books on my dealing and my dad's dealing with OMC. Usually, we'd help them out of some dam thing....Then, they'd take the credit...
Like the time my dad called Jack Leek, Director of High Performance at OMC and said, "Send me two sets of rings for two engines...." Jack said, "Why?" My dad said, "Well whoever is putting these engines together is breaking the rings at the factory." Leek said, "Under our agreement, you aren't to touch the engines" My dad said, "The hell with the agreement, I'm tired of blown up engines...send me some rings and hung up."
Some heads rolled at OMC... But they quit putting engines together with broken rings....
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National Circle Boat 1991
My article of the 25 All time best drivers...
1. Bill Sirois
2. Dean Chenowith
3. Chip Hanauer
4. Bill Seebold, Jr.
5. Jerry Waldman
6. Renato Molinari
7. Bob Nordskog
8. Bill Cooper
9. Johnny Sanders
10. Chris Bush
11. Bill Muncey
12. Jimbo McConnell
13. Dick O'Dea
14. Bob Wartinger
15. Ted Jones
16. Skeeter Johnson
17. Gordon Jennings, Jr.
18. Julian Pettengill
19. Bobby Switzer
20. Dick Jones
21. Hugh Entrop
22. Al Stoker
23. Rusty Chambell
24. Orlando Torganti
25. Homer Kincaid
That was my list then, not sure I'd change it today...
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Strawberry Festival: Why?
Broc saw my plaque for being citizen of the month, 1973....I guess, I never got around to telling him about it... He asked how I got to be "Citizen of the Month"... I said, "Damn Mel Zikes always said I was from Garbage Grove in his articles....and the Major called me up to help beautify the city...So, I helped on a project or two...and I could see they had plans for ME...I moved to Irvine, in April of 1976.... but I told them earlier I wasn't going to run for Mayor....unless I moved to Needles...
Last picture of the 1973 Strawberry Festival Parade....Everybody loves a parade...